My hands are still on hers. Stella trembles. Her breathing is jerky, as if she were about to have a panic attack. Her eyes have not left our hands. I slide my index finger under her chin to force her to look at me. When she plunges her blue irises into mine, I detect panic. And tears. Always tears...

I'm smiling at her to try and comfort her.

"Look... nothing you show me will make me leave this room", I assure her.

My words seem to have their effect and, slowly, she begins to lower the cover. Her gesture is still very hesitant. At that moment, I discovered that she was wearing denim shorts. I noticed a small rosary of freckles on her thigh. Her skin is very soft. But, suddenly, she stops again.

"You don't know," she whispers. "You don't know what's under there..."

"I hope you're not hiding an alien baby ready to eat me!" I'm joking, pretending to be scared.

She looks up and laughs, despite her apprehension. I join her. Then, quickly, she regains her seriousness, again focusing her attention on the edge of the blanket.

"What you're about to see... it's not very..."

She has a hard time finding her words. I can see the dilemma in her. She wants to tell me her secret, but she's afraid.

- Stella, you're gonna be okay.

She raises her head towards me again. This time, I can read determination in her eyes. She slowly begins to lower the blanket. Without warning, she removes her hands to hide her face. As I look at her, I realize, after a few seconds, that what I thought was fear is actually shame.

"I can't do it," she says.

But what is there under this plea for her to be in this state?

"Do you want... me... to do it?" I ask her carefully.

With her face still hidden behind her hands, she nods her head. It's my turn to be nervous. Gently, I grasp the hem of the blanket and continue to lower it. Stella groans and, little by little, her groaning turns into sobs.

The blanket is at her left knee. It's a little higher on his right side. I look at her one last time before I start the descent on her calves. And that's when I discover Stella's secret. It is here, in front of me, and I now understand why she reacted that way when I touched her plea.

She carefully removes her hands from her face and gauges me. I must say that I can't get her eyes off her right leg. I didn't expect this.

"Say something, I beg you," she sobs.

I look up at her and her eyes are filled with despair. I don't know what to say, really. I'm shocked. Her eyes suddenly turn black and Stella pulls the cover of my hands to take refuge underneath.

"Get out of my room," she says, turning away from me.

She turns around and runs away from me. I blink frantically. Her rejection makes me come back to reality and I rush in front of her to stop her. I put my hands on her armrests and stare into hers.

"Stella, I am... I am caught off guard", I confess to her. "I expected everything but... this. In fact, I had no idea what to expect. But... I'm glad you told me your secret. Like I said, I'm not leaving this room, unless an alien comes out of that chair!"

My new attempt at humor relaxes her.

"So... it doesn't disgust you?" she asks me with apprehension.

I slowly shake my head without taking my eyes off her. Her features relax and relief can be seen on her face. I put my gaze back on his bruised leg. With my fingertips, I caress her thigh and go down to the place of her wound. Stella shudders. I stop at her knee, where the rest of her leg should be. This amputation must have been a terrible ordeal for her. I would love to know what happened to her, but I would rather keep my questions for later. Just the fact that she shares this secret with me is enough and is a sign of confidence that makes me feel better.

"I've wanted to tell you for a while, but..."

She stops at once.

"Is that why you were pushing me away? Because you were afraid of my reaction?" I ask her.

She frowns, as if she were looking for an adequate answer to my question.

"Among other things... but what I told you before, I still think so. That you better stay away from me."

"Why? Why are you repeating this?"

I am very confused. She just told me a very important secret, yet she keeps trying to keep me away.

"Because it's the truth," she replies, shrugging her shoulders. "I would only bring you trouble."

I refuse to believe it. But what is this truth she is talking about?

"If it's about your leg, or the reason you're here... I'm willing to take a lot of things", I assure her.

She looks down at her leg before raising her head towards me with a slight smile.

"Even if you would regret it later?" she insists.

I really don't see where she's going with this and why she's so convinced that she's harmful to me. But it doesn't matter.

"That's a risk I'm willing to take. For you."

******